Sloth (NBZP)
Sloth is a Toa of Water in the New BZPRPG. A loyal yet lazy follower of the Makuta and subsequently a follower and Inquisitor of Xa-Koro, Sloth embodies the Sin of Sloth (also called Acedia) in the group of Toa called the Toa Daedra. He is played by Parugi in the NBZPRPG. Appearance Sloth looks like a typical Toa of Water. He stands at seven feet tall, wore a Mask of Rebounding shaped like a Kanohi Faxon, and tends to carry his weapons on his belt, which has various pouches attached to it so as to allow him to carry smaller objects. However, instead of possessing blue and silver armor like other Toa of Water, he has painted his armor dark blue and black to represent his darker nature, adding small spikes to emphasize the difference even more. He wears a deep, navy blue cape, clasped at his left shoulder and concealing the upper portion of his right arm. Sloth's clasp is engraved with the sign of the Daedra; in high-concentration, anti-Makuta areas, he swaps out this clasp with a blank one of the same color. Following the destruction of his Mask of Rebounding at the hands of Humility, Sloth has since replaced his mask with a Mask of Sloth, also in the shape of a Kanohi Faxon; currently the only known Mask of Sloth in existence, Sloth had it custom made by a Matoran forger named "G," who owed a debt to the mercenary named Nynn, who was working for the Daedra at the time of its creation. Sloth and Nynn have since been ensured by "G" (after having threatened him with death -- or worse -- of course) that he will be involved in the creation of no more Masks of Sloth, unless it is specifically for Sloth himself. Sloth's cape is now torn in several places following the Humility fight, as he has yet to fix it, though he doesn't seem to particularly care about this. Unbeknownst to those around him, the armor currently worn by Sloth is not his original set repaired to its former glory, but instead it is an entirely new set created by Zyckel in Ta-Koro. The armor is completely identical to his previous set; according to Zyckel, this is due to him having come across several files containing the blueprints for each of the Toa Daedras' individual armor, and then using his Iron powers to make copies of the armor sets. Personality and Nature Contrary to the normal Toa of Water, yet true to his name, Sloth is completely apathetic and selfish. If it doesn't pertain to him, then it doesn't concern him. Sloth pays very little attention to the world or beings around him, blowing them and their problems off as if they were dust on his armor. He resents any kind of work, and as such does not always follow the orders issued by the leader of the Toa Daedra, Pride, though if it comes from someone he considers higher up (I.E. Makuta or one of his supposed disciples) then he'll make sure to do it -- albeit reluctantly. His careless nature shows in his abilities -- at best, he could only be described as two thirds capable of what other Toa would be able to do with their elements, physical abilities and weapons, tiring out far more quickly than others normally would. Only a few things have ever managed to catch Sloth's concern and the attention that subsequently accompanies it. The first is a blue rose that he keeps in a special case with the rest of his belongings, falling into a rage if someone so much as taps it, though no explanation for this behavior has ever been provided. The rose, as has been correctly guessed by some, such as Envy, is a sort of weakness of Sloth's on top of all of his lack of skills. Another attention-grabber for Sloth is the group of Virtue Toa known as the Toa Arete, a group of seven Toa whose ideals stand in direct contrast to those of the Daedra. Sloth has shown an unusual enthusiasm in dealing with them, expressing special interest in going after his opposite -- Diligence -- at some point in the future, and even 'claiming' the Toa as his target when the two groups come into large-scale conflict again. Following the disastrous battle against the Arete in Ta-Koro, in the aftermath of which Wrath was killed upon being accused of having betrayed the Daedra, Sloth has also developed a grudge against the Toa known as Humility, as the Toa of Plasma -- along with a couple of other beings -- were the cause of the injuries he sustained in the battle. Along with the Arete, Sloth has also taken notice of the Daedra's sworn archnemesis, Captain Marvel, though Sloth has never truly considered the Toa to be a threat considering the number advantage the Daedra possess over him -- that, and the fact that he has never actually had to deal with him, having left that up to the others during their encounters with him. Beneath this careless side, Sloth has been implied to have future 'plans' for the Daedra, similar to those possessed by Envy, Greed and Lust. Given how he is, it's completely up in the air as to what will become of these plans -- like Envy, he could simply remain passive and not act on his ideas due to how much time and enegry would need to be put in; on the other hand, he has been shown to have an intense dislike towards Lust, considering her arrogant nature (specifically her power claims regarding herself and any other Valkyr they come across) to be unbearable to be around, and only respects Pride out of fear towards his power. While other characters have had suspicions about Sloth in the past -- most of the other Daedra, in fact, and for various reasons: Pride (due to a mishap on Sloth's part recently while he was tailing the Toa of Iron in Ta-Koro,) Greed (noticed Sloth's quick movements to protect Lust against an attack by a Toa in Ta-Koro, as well as the fact that Sloth has never been affected by Lust's 'beauty spell,') Lust (due to the same swift movements,) and, surprisingly, Gluttony (on pure intuition) -- no one has ever been able to prove anything or even ever called him out on his behavior. Surprisingly, much of Sloth's annoyance at the group seems to stem from the arrogance that several members possess; he dislikes both Pride and Lust, both of whom possess overbearingly snobbish and self-glorifying personalities, and both of them have been noted as "top priority targets" in Sloth's mental examination of the group. Clearly, he has a distaste for those who think so highly of themselves, though it is unclear if there is a specific reason for this or if it is just a petpeeve of Sloth's. Manifestation of Sin As the embodiment of Sloth, Sloth is naturally apathetic and lazy, much to the annoyance of those around him -- including the other Daedra at times, though as it is essentially his job to be that way, there is very little reason for them to get annoyed. Typically, those who meet Sloth assume that his Sin is manifested primarily as tiredness; this assumption is not that far off from the truth, as Sloth will occasionally put off helping his team so as to create a makeshift bed and take a nap. This is usually nothing more than a ruse; beneath his tired exterior lies a Toa of Water who is capable of springing into action at a moment's notice. In truth, Sloth considers himself to be more apathetic than anything else in terms of his Sin; on more than one occasion he has pointed out the dual meaning of his vice to whoever he is speaking with, with one of the biggest cases being in a conversation with Lust. While he sees benefits to the situations he usually ends up in, he doesn't particularly care one way or another in regards to how things turn out, so long as they don't result in his own death. Powers and Abilities Toa Powers As a Toa, Sloth possesses the elemental power of Water. This allows him to create, control and absorb moisture and -- specifically, as the name implies -- water. Due to his apathetic nature and his Sin, Sloth's skills with his elemental powers are underdeveloped, as he does not practice them as often as most Toa do. This puts him at a disadvantage against his opponents; however, he has still been shown to hold his own in battle against opponents when under stress, even against the Toa of Plasma called Humility and a Vortixx with a water-disabling weapon called Harribel -- though he did eventually get knocked unconscious. While he does not possess much skill on a battle-level, Sloth has been shown to use his powers comedically and skillfully outside of combat, such as forming a large fish out of water and slapping it against a hostage's face so as to wake him up, as well as using his element in Po-Wahi to create a bed of sand for himself while Pride bargained with a weapon salesman. More seriously, he is has been shown to be able to create a perfectly sized coat of water over his body so as to cool down in Po-Koro, suggesting that he does possess at least a fairly deep connection with his element. Mask Powers Since his introduction, Sloth has used only two Kanohi powers. Originally, he wore a modified Mask of Rebounding, which Sloth had a tendency to use as a sort of full-body shield in battle, capable of rebounding attacks back on his opponents; this was his primary mask up until the Toa Daedra arrived in Ta-Koro and fought against the Toa Arete. In the battle, a kick to Sloth's face from a miniature Humility shattered Sloth's Mask of Rebounding, though a final, timely activation of the mask before the hit struck gave Sloth a good enough shield to prevent his neck from snapping. With the help of Nynn, Sloth was soon able to force a Ta-Matoran maskmaker named "G" to figure out a formula for creating a Mask of Sloth. So far, Sloth's Mask of Sloth is the only one that is known to exist. When activated, it can induce sleepiness on a single target, or instill a deep sense of apathy in their mind. Sloth used the mask in his, Nynn's and Thurduk's interrogation of the Scarred Paladin named Corto as a way to gian information, though it was discovered the pain could repel the apathetic effects that the Mask induced. Due to his inexperience with the mask, Sloth has to concentrate fairly hard on the mask to make sure it affects a being a certain way, otherwise it will cause a being who is supposed to only be apathetic to fall asleep and vice versa. Tools Primarily, Sloth fights using a pair of tomahawks, each of them with a ring on their ends to conect a chain to. If he concentrates hard enough, Sloth can maintain a link of water between the two weapons, and thus use them as a sort of double-bladed whip. Sloth has also been known to use a knife in combat, though this is not what he primarily uses the tool for. History Relationships The Toa Daedra Sloth's relation with the Daedra as a whole was born out of necessity more than anything else. With little direction in his life, he was more than willing to join the group when offered the position by Pride; however, on more than one occasion he has been shown to possess absolutely no sense of loyalty or kinship to several of the other Daedra, Lust in particular, as the two are constantly at odds over whatever topic is being discussed. In fact, Sloth at one point made it very clear to Nynn that if the opportunity were to arise for the Daedra to betray each other and crumble with little consequence, he, along with most other members of the team, would very gladly take it. Despite this, Sloth has also admitted that he values the team itself, regardless of attitudes from the other Daedra that may annoy him. He realizes that there have been multiple occasions in which he would surely have been killed without the help of his comrades, and that Pride gave him a chance to do things that he would not otherwise have been able to do by himself. The Toa Arete The Scarred Paladins Sloth has not had any actual encounters with the Scarred Paladins up to this point; however, he knows that there were a couple of members present at the Arete-Daedra battle, and he recently assisted Thurduk Jagen and Nynn in interrogating a member of the group named Corto after Corto had attacked Thurduk in an unsuccessful attempt to subdue the Inquisitor. From the interrogation, Sloth has discovered a small bit of information about the group, specifically regarding its existence at all and a small piece of information about its leadership, though the interrogation was also helpful in notifying Sloth about the way in which his Mask's power could be blocked. Hired Help Through their adventures, the Daedra have recruited a fair number of mercenaries to assist them; at the moment, they are accompanied by two Skakdi, named Raknar and Disotel, and a Toa of Earth named Nynn. While he hasn't really directly interacted with the former two, Nynn assisted Sloth in seeking a healer and mask-maker following the Daedra-Areta battle in Ta-Koro, providing assistance in protecting the injured Toa of Water from potential harm, and later helping in Sloth and Thurduk's interrogation of Corto. While he doesn't necessarily consider him a friend, Sloth doesn't mind Nynn's presence, even thanking him for his help at one point, and seems to like him quite a bit more than, say, Lust or the other Daedra. Xa-Koro and Other Inquisitors Sloth's relationship with Xa-Koro is a fairly fanatic one, despite how little care he has for life. He is a firm believer in the religion and is willing to take any order that is passed to him from one of the top dogs without hesitation -- something that not even Pride has been able to make him do. In terms of Inquisitors, Sloth's relations vary. Usually, he doesn't pay much attention to or mind most of the Inquisitors he meets, though there are some that manage to gain his interest or respect, such as Thurduk, and that he is therefore willing to help in their tasks. Others he could care less for or simply doesn't notice -- one example being the assassin known as Zadron, whom he has run into a couple of times when with the other Daedra though never really considered an important being. Notably, Sloth had a small encounter with Joske, a rather famous mage, when the Daedra first entered Ta-Koro and were looking to sell Dreenen, a captured Toa of Plasma. Due to inactivity on Parugi's part at the time, Sloth didn't actually speak with the Toa, and as such Sloth's reaction to seeing him was muted and essentially nonexistent. Had things played out as hoped, Sloth would have possessed a slight interest in the Toa, and may have even let his Slothic attitude go for more than a monent; however, having witnessed Joske's rather arrogant attitude firsthand, any respect that Sloth might have had for the Mage is no longer existent. "Captain Marvel" While they have encountered each other many times in the past, Sloth has never actually interacted with Marvel, aside from one or two isntances where they traded blows. Sloth doesn't consider Marvel to be a true threat to the Daedras' ever-moving missions, instead simply considering him to be a minor nuance. Quotes *''"Was I? I couldn't tell you why if I wanted to, Pride. Like I said, I don't even know how I got here, unless I was sleep-walking... That actually reminds me of that time in Po-Koro when I started sleep-walking and ended up signing up for and almost winning that Koli tournament... You remember that, right? I thought it was a pretty big deal..."'' -Sloth explaining why he was following Pride. *''"Sloth does not feel fear. Sloth is apathy. Apathy is emotionless. Therefore I do not fear you, or any sharks -- as a matter of fact you and your metaphorical shark had ought to be quite fearful of ME, sister, because -- GAH! HOT HOT HOT!"'' -Sloth, to Harribel. *""You know, for so-called cleansers of evil, you heroic types tend to fight REALLY unfairly," he growled. "And as you've blemished me, I think this calls for more personal measures: I am going to ''PERSONALLY rip you apart, limb from bloody-''freakin'-limb''!"" -Sloth, upon being injured by Humility and Harribel. *""A Hau?" Sloth repeated. "Disgusting. Does the Hau not represent Mata Nui? Does it not represent what the Toa Daedra oppose? It goes against what I'' stand for, Greed -- Acedia does not protect, it diverts, just as my Mask of Rebounding did. Ugh." He buried his face in his hands. "I can honestly say that I feel like vomiting. Anyone happen to have a Miracle Cactus on hand?"" -Sloth, upon discovering that his destroyed Mask of Rebounding has been replaced with a Hau. Trivia *Sloth's obsession with his rose was based primarily off of the similar situation in Beauty and the Beast -- though obviously without the transformation into a beast. *A running gag with Sloth seems to be that many of his stranger activities are almost always interrupted or ruined by the environment or another of the Daedra. Examples include his sleeping in the middle of the desert of Po-Koro (woken by Lust via kick to the neck,) tailing Pride in Ta-Koro (crumbling portion of the roof caused him to fall and alertted Pride to his presense,) and even such a serious action as interrogating Corto (serious atmosphere was ruined by Sloth himself via fish-slap joke, along with Corto's sarcastic answers.) **Sloth also has a tendency to break the fourth wall -- a lot. There have also been at least three instances in which the beings he was talking to at the time did not understand what he was talking about because of this. *According to Sloth, he once accidently signed up for and almost won a Koli tournament while sleep-walking. The only reason he didn't win was because he woke up in the middle of the final round. Category:Toa (NBZP) Category:Toa Daedra (NBZP)